The study shows that in liquid environments, where bacteria rely on movement to navigate, the rotation of flagella acts as a mechanical signal that turns on a set of genes required for DNA transfer.

The research team discovered that the rotation of flagella in Bacillus subtilis acts as a mechanical signal that activates key conjugation genes. This enables donor bacteria to form clusters with ...

Department of Biological Sciences, The University of Texas at Dallas, United States; Department of Urology, University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, United States; ...

Protists are unicellular eukaryotes that are widespread in all types of habitats (Buck et al. 2000, Laybourn-Parry et al. 2000, Pedros-Alio et al. 2000, Scott et al. 2001). They are an essential ...